were drawn to in life you will still be drawn to as a Mortui. You’ll
discover that. Certain individuals will always attract you, lift your spirits.”
She waited for a moment before continuing, “Tell me more, Wes. Why did you feel
depressed about this woman?”
“I tried to tell her how I felt, and then she just
disappeared. I didn’t hear from her for weeks, and I took it as rejection. When
I was dying, I realized that I had attributed her behavior – wanting to leave me
– to everyone I’ve loved. The truth is I push people away. That night I felt
lonely and miserable and didn’t want to deal with the feelings. It’s funny
though, when it came down to it, I didn’t intend to end my own life.”
“So you never got to talk to this girl before you died? You
still don’t know how she felt about you?”
“No.” Now he’d never get to talk to her. He continued
slowly, as if recalling a horrible dream. “My death was bad timing, I guess.
She called right after I’d taken the pills and said she wanted to see me. The
way she said it gave me the impression that what she wanted to tell me was
really important. In the end though, I don’t know if she ever stopped by. I
imagined I saw her as I was dying, but she was gone before I woke up, so I
don’t think she was really there. If she was, wouldn’t she have tried to save
me? Wouldn’t she have called an ambulance or something, even if she didn’t care
for me? I think she knocked, but I didn’t answer, so she must have gone away.”
He sighed. “None of this really matters anyway. I’m dead now.”
Anne Marie and Emily looked at each other as Wes finished
his story. Anne Marie’s smile disappeared and was replaced with a slight look
of concern. Emily nodded to Anne Marie, who got up and walked over to her desk
to pick up a photo she returned to show Wes. “Is this Jezebel?”
Wes looked at the picture. It was definitely Jezebel. How
could they know? He looked back up at the two women.
“She’s with the Atumra. We’ve had some of our team following
her for quite some time.”
“You mean she’s Mortui? That’s impossible. I’ve known her
for a while. I’m sure I would’ve known!” Wes stared at the picture, imagining
it would change into someone else.
“When she left your building that night, the team following
her didn’t think anything about it. There were indicators that led us to
believe she might be actively working to recruit you since you have a
biological predisposition to be a Mortui, but we didn’t realize she was the one
who killed you.”
“She didn’t kill me! I killed me!” Wes threw the picture
down on the table in the center of the sitting area and stood up. “I killed
me.” He repeated the statement again for his own benefit. He stubbornly wanted
to believe Jezebel wasn’t what they were telling him she was.
“You probably would have if she hadn’t. If she hadn’t sucked
the life out of you before the pills and alcohol had done their job, it’s
possible your soul would have severed and you wouldn’t have become a Mortui.
However, we don’t know this for sure. You could have become a Mortui just
because your death was premature. Your body was decaying too fast for you to
have died from an overdose, which is one of the indications that your life
energy was taken. It was just a theory, but now you’ve confirmed it with your
story.”
“No. No. There’s no way Jez is a Mortui. She’s too alive. I
would have known! I know she wouldn’t have done that to me!” Wes knew he
sounded defensive but couldn’t help it.
“Wes, no one is questioning what you felt for her,” Emily
said softly, inserting herself into the conversation for the first time.
“Remember that Anne Marie said you’re drawn to the same people you would be if
you were living. Since you still feel this way about her, the feelings must
have been genuine.”
“Absolutely,” Anne Marie said, “and she must have cared for
you in
discover that. Certain individuals will always attract you, lift your spirits.”
She waited for a moment before continuing, “Tell me more, Wes. Why did you feel
depressed about this woman?”
“I tried to tell her how I felt, and then she just
disappeared. I didn’t hear from her for weeks, and I took it as rejection. When
I was dying, I realized that I had attributed her behavior – wanting to leave me
– to everyone I’ve loved. The truth is I push people away. That night I felt
lonely and miserable and didn’t want to deal with the feelings. It’s funny
though, when it came down to it, I didn’t intend to end my own life.”
“So you never got to talk to this girl before you died? You
still don’t know how she felt about you?”
“No.” Now he’d never get to talk to her. He continued
slowly, as if recalling a horrible dream. “My death was bad timing, I guess.
She called right after I’d taken the pills and said she wanted to see me. The
way she said it gave me the impression that what she wanted to tell me was
really important. In the end though, I don’t know if she ever stopped by. I
imagined I saw her as I was dying, but she was gone before I woke up, so I
don’t think she was really there. If she was, wouldn’t she have tried to save
me? Wouldn’t she have called an ambulance or something, even if she didn’t care
for me? I think she knocked, but I didn’t answer, so she must have gone away.”
He sighed. “None of this really matters anyway. I’m dead now.”
Anne Marie and Emily looked at each other as Wes finished
his story. Anne Marie’s smile disappeared and was replaced with a slight look
of concern. Emily nodded to Anne Marie, who got up and walked over to her desk
to pick up a photo she returned to show Wes. “Is this Jezebel?”
Wes looked at the picture. It was definitely Jezebel. How
could they know? He looked back up at the two women.
“She’s with the Atumra. We’ve had some of our team following
her for quite some time.”
“You mean she’s Mortui? That’s impossible. I’ve known her
for a while. I’m sure I would’ve known!” Wes stared at the picture, imagining
it would change into someone else.
“When she left your building that night, the team following
her didn’t think anything about it. There were indicators that led us to
believe she might be actively working to recruit you since you have a
biological predisposition to be a Mortui, but we didn’t realize she was the one
who killed you.”
“She didn’t kill me! I killed me!” Wes threw the picture
down on the table in the center of the sitting area and stood up. “I killed
me.” He repeated the statement again for his own benefit. He stubbornly wanted
to believe Jezebel wasn’t what they were telling him she was.
“You probably would have if she hadn’t. If she hadn’t sucked
the life out of you before the pills and alcohol had done their job, it’s
possible your soul would have severed and you wouldn’t have become a Mortui.
However, we don’t know this for sure. You could have become a Mortui just
because your death was premature. Your body was decaying too fast for you to
have died from an overdose, which is one of the indications that your life
energy was taken. It was just a theory, but now you’ve confirmed it with your
story.”
“No. No. There’s no way Jez is a Mortui. She’s too alive. I
would have known! I know she wouldn’t have done that to me!” Wes knew he
sounded defensive but couldn’t help it.
“Wes, no one is questioning what you felt for her,” Emily
said softly, inserting herself into the conversation for the first time.
“Remember that Anne Marie said you’re drawn to the same people you would be if
you were living. Since you still feel this way about her, the feelings must
have been genuine.”
“Absolutely,” Anne Marie said, “and she must have cared for
you in
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